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Carole King to be honored for music, charitable work

Carole King will be honored for a career spanning six decades. Photo: Reuters

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Singer-songwriter Carole King will be honored as the 2014 MusiCares Person of the Year for a career spanning nearly six decades and her charitable and philanthropic work at a tribute early next year, The Recording Academy, which hands out the Grammy Awards, said on Thursday.

Lady Gaga, Bette Midler and James Taylor will perform at the gala in Los Angeles on January 24, two nights before the Grammys.

King, 71, wrote a string of hits such as “Will You Love Me Tomorrow,” which she penned with her first husband and collaborator Gerry Goffin, and went on to make solo albums including 1971’s multiple Grammy award winning “Tapestry.”

“Her contributions as a songwriter and performer have truly changed the landscape of pop music, and her philanthropy speaks volumes about her generosity and personal passions,” said Neil Portnow, the president and CEO of the MusiCares Foundation, which provides services and programs for people in the music industry.

King’s other hits include “I Feel the Earth Move,” “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman,” and “Sweet Seasons.”

She co-wrote her first No. 1 hit at age 17 and was the first female solo artist to sell more than 10 million copies of a single album with “Tapestry.”

King was awarded the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song for lifetime achievement earlier this year.

A musical of her life is due to open on Broadway next spring. “Beautiful: The Carole King Musical,” will feature songs written by King and chart her life from Brooklyn to fame and fortune.